Saarc Summit postponedDhaka yesterday postponed the 13th Saarc Summit indefinitely in the wake of Sunday's earthquake-triggered tsunamis that devastated three South Asian countries, but Foreign Minister M Morshed Khan also

Cry for relief as death toll crosses 120,000Millions of people on Indian Ocean shores scrambled for food and clean water yesterday, with disease and hunger now the main threats stalking survivors of the most devastating tsunami on record.

800-km opposition human wall to oust govt formedThousands of people yesterday locked hands to form a cross-country human wall for the second time in a month, in what opposition leaders say is an expression of people's desire for an immediate step down

Fire guts 450 shacks in Pallabi, 10 hurtA fire completely gutted over 450 shanties and around 150 handlooms and left at least 10 people injured at a quarter of stranded Pakistanis at city's Pallabi area early yesterday.

3 tribes feared lostThree of the world's six most endangered primitive tribes inhabiting India's worst Tsunami-hit area, the Andaman and Nicobar islands, are feared to have perished.

2 outlaws, criminal killed in crossfireFour people including two outlawed political operatives died in alleged crossfire between law enforcers and their associates in the capital and the south-west region yesterday.

Hartal observed in RajshahiA dawn-to-dusk hartal, enforced by Awami League-led 14-party opposition, was observed peacefully in Rajshahi district yesterday in protest against the killing of Prof Muhammad Yunus of economics department

Fish frenzy roils SunamganjPrivate security guards hired by leaseholders are harassing farmers who traditionally fish in ponds created by seasonal flooding at more than 500 jalmahals in the Sunamganj area.

Shallow sea floor saved BangladeshBangladesh survived the effects of the tsunami that struck on December 26, following a massive earthquake on the sea floor near the Indonesian island of Sumatra--1,019-km from Chittagong--because of a

Noab, BSP statement on wage boardNewspaper Owners Association of Bangladesh (Noab) and Bangladesh Sangbadpatra Parishad (BSP) yesterday issued a joint statement on the demand for a 6th wage board for journalists and employees of newspapers

Dozens killed in Iraq clashesPitched battles between US troops and Iraqi insurgents in strife-torn Mosul left at least 26 dead including one US soldier as two Lebanese businessmen were kidnapped in Baghdad overnight.

Opposition to announce next programme January 4The main opposition Awami League (AL) and its allies will announce their next agitation programmes on January 4 to press home their nine-point demand with the ultimate goal of dislodging the BNP-led coalition

ACC official asked not to speak to pressThe Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Anti Corruption Commission, whose job is to provide information to the public and the media, has been ordered not to speak to the press.

AnnouncementLook out for our 12-page full-colour New Year Special supplement that will be coming out tomorrow, January 1, 2005. We hope you find it enjoyable and informative. Ask your hawker for your copy.

Prioritise ICT sector for country's developmentBusiness leaders called for development in information and communication technology (ICT) sector to ensure overall outgrowth of the country through the use of science and latest technology.

Euro hits record high against yenThe euro hit a record high against the yen on Thursday and remained within striking distance of this week's all-time peak versus the dollar. Its bull run looks set to continue in 2005.

Alltex okays 10pc dividendAlltex Industries Limited has approved a 10 percent dividend for its shareholders for the year that ended on June 30, 2004.

MCCI president re-electedKutubuddin Ahmed, a former president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, has been re-elected the president of Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Dhaka for the year

Premier Bank branch opens in GazipurThe 21st branch of Premier Bank was inaugurated at Chandana Chowrasta in Gazipur yesterday.Chairman of the bank HBM Iqbal formally opened the branch, says a press release.

New president of ICABSheikh Abdul Hafiz has been elected the new president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Bangladesh (ICAB).

‘Persistent dollar weakness a concern’Persistent US dollar weakness is a concern and stability in foreign exchange markets requires a correction of global economic imbalances, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder was quoted as saying on Monday.

Cricket:Past Taibu's inspirationA new-look Zimbabwe cricket team arrived in Dhaka yesterday to feature in what pundits have dubbed a championship of the two lightweight Test nations.

Cricket:Biman inflict mighty blow on MSCLast year's runners-up Moha-mmedan Spor-ting Club were virtually thrown out of the title race when Bang-ladesh Biman handed them a 19-run defeat in a crucial Premier Division Cricket League match at the

Cricket:Bad light snaps Eng streakSouth Africa held on to draw a match of dramatic changes of fortunes when bad light stopped play on the final afternoon of the second Test against England at Kingsmead Thursday.

Cricket:Lara's men finally fly down underNew West Indies coach Bennett King has called on the Caribbean side to be more consistent and bury the cash controversy which has dogged the team's build-up to their tour of Australia.

Cricket:SL stranded for a daySri Lanka's cricketers face another anxious day's wait before returning home after their tour of New Zealand was postponed.

Hockey:Usha survive Ajax scareA late rally saw Usha Krira Chakra come from a first-half deficit to beat Ajax Sporting Club 3-1 in the opening match of the Green Delta Premier Hockey Super League at the Maulana Bhasani Stadium yesterday

Cricket:McGill in, Lee outAustralia on Thursday named out-of-form batsman Darren Lehmann in a 13-man squad for the third Test against Pakistan but dropped speedman Brett Lee as selectors expanded their bowling arsenal for a turning

Cricket:India unlikely to fill the SL void in NZIndia is unlikely to accept any offer to play in New Zealand in January in place of the Sri Lankans, who cancelled a tour in the wake of the Asian tsunami tragedy, an official in New Delhi said Thursday.

Australians show heartAid agencies said the Australian public had inundated Asian disaster funds with the most generous appeal response in the country's history Thursday as Prime Minister John Howard urged people to give more

Cricket:Gibbs fined for misleading umpireSouth Africa opener Herschelle Gibbs has been fined 40 per cent of his match fee for a "deliberate attempt to mislead an umpire" during the second Test.

Tennis:Sharapova so generousWimbledon champion Maria Sharapova, due to play an exhibition match in Thailand against Venus Williams, will donate 10,000 dollars to help victims of the killer tsunamis that hit the kingdom, a minister

Cricket:Malik finds 'em all immatureBanned former captain Salim Malik Thursday blamed a lack of maturity in both Pakistan's cricket team and its management for the recent crushing defeats against Australia.

Football:Vieira ensures happy New YearArsenal will enter the New Year five points adrift of Premiership leaders Chelsea after a hard-fought and somewhat fortunate 1-0 win over Newcastle here on Wednesday.

Football:Morientes' mind is madeReal Madrid striker Fernando Morientes, who helped Monaco to the Champions League final last season, has said he will be joining Premiership side Liverpool.

Football:Rooney chargedManchester United striker Wayne Rooney was on Wednesday charged with violent conduct by the Football Association after he shoved Bolton's Tal Ben Haim in the face at Old Trafford on Boxing Day.

Football:Typically RomarioFormer Brazil striker Romario said on Wednesday he was considering a possible return to his first club Vasco da Gama despite a newspaper report that he had decided to retire.

Tennis:Tennis doping baffles FedererWorld number one Roger Federer says he is baffled by incidents of drug-taking in tennis such as the positive test returned by Austrian Stefan Koubek last week.

Lovely: A role modelLooking at her work, one would find it hard to believe that Lovely (her real name is Khadiza Akhter) is a tetraplegic (paralysed from the neck down).

Treasures from the SubcontinentIt is not often that Dhaka sees paintings by well-known foreign artists. In Shilpangan's recent exhibition Bandhan, however, one saw the works of MF Husain, KG Subramanyan and more from India.

Our TalentsBangladesh's rich cultural heritage has been built up by many notable talents. Some of them have passed away, while some are still contributing to their chosen fields.

Swani Zubayeer: A glimpse of the singerSwani Zubayeer has had a rich and varied career as a singer. Recently, he regaled the Dhaka audience with geet, ghazal, thumri and Bengali modern music at a function in the National Museum Auditorium.

Help implement govt's programmePrime Minister Khaleda Zia yesterday sought cooperation of all, particularly the youth, in successful implementation of the government's massive programme to turn the huge population into human resources

Economic self-reliance a must for securityThe smaller countries around the world must build up their economic self-reliance as a potential security measure in the face of uni-polar hegemonic world order, said the speakers at a roundtable yesterday.

Cable operators call off strikeThe Cable Operators' Association of Bangladesh (Coab) yesterday called off its three-hour token strike several hours before the strike was scheduled to begin as Dhaka Electric Supply Company (Desco) suspended

Fresh autopsy on Tania's bodyDoctors yesterday carried out a fresh post-mortem on the body of a housewife who allegedly committed suicide at Sutrapur in the city over a month ago.

18 get life for Baufal double murderEighteen people were sentenced to life imprisonment while nine others acquitted of charges in a double murder case in Baufal upazila under Patuakhali district in 2001.

New school to be set up for the dumb in cityThe Prime Minister's Political Secretary Harris Chowdhury yesterday said the government would continue its efforts to bring physically challenged people into the mainstream of society.

Get back my missing brotherA sister yesterday appealed to the prime minister and the state minister for home to get back her brother who was allegedly abducted on November 18.

Market Access to promote services of Thai hospitalPiyavate Hospital, a leading and most modern boutique hospital in Thailand, has appointed Market Access Providers Limited to promote medical and health services of the hospital in the country, says apress

GP donation for tsunami victimsGrameenPhone Ltd will donate all its earnings from the SMS traffic on December 31 and January 1 to help the people in the tsunami-affected areas, says a press release.

DU Eng Deptt Alumni Society get-together Jan 7The English Department Alumni Society, University of Dhaka, will hold its annual get-together on January 7, says a press release. The programme will begin at 3.00pm at the Teacher-Student Centre (TSC).

1,957 more heldPolice arrested 1,957 people, including one listed criminal, on various charges during their countrywide drive in the last 24 hours till 6.00am yesterday.

Editorial:Academic standstill at RUThe situation at Rajshahi University, which witnessed the gruesome murder of Professor Muhammad Yunus only six days back, has turned murkier with six more teachers receiving death threats from unknown

What is their fault?This is an appeal to the government to consider the promotion cases of the civil officers who were not considered in the past.

Conference registration feesFor the last few days, two international conferences are going on in Dhaka. Now the ICECE by EE, BUET, is going on at Hotel Sonargaon. But the registration fee is very high.

Protective dutiesOn the 22nd December, the government announced the imposition of protective duties on salt, card board for packaging, and poultry chicks.

Leaders must know...Often it is heard that some of the leaders of the BNP-Jamaat led coalition government say that the media are maligning country's face in the outside world.

An environmentalist's concernAs a political environmentalist in the UK, I have often cited the nation-wide ban on plastic bags in Bangladesh as an example of what enlightened political will can achieve.

Sri Lanka appeals for more aidSri Lanka yesterday appealed for more aid as it plodded on with the sickening task of burying bloated corpses in the struggle to prevent outbreaks of disease piling more misery on its shattered population.

They lived off the sea, now they all hate itBattered badly, fisherfolk, the worst affected in Sunday's tsunami, are seeking housing sites that are away from the coastal belt of India."We never wanted to move because sea and fishermen areinseparable.

India joins UN relief effortIndia agreed yesterday to join the United States, Australia and Japan in coordinating UN relief efforts for victims of tsunamis which killed 81,000 people in several countries, the foreign ministry said.

Maldives loses 42 islandsAt least 42 islands in the tourist paradise of the Maldives were flattened with 117 people killed and missing after tsunamis raved the low-lying atoll nation, the president said yesterday.

Manmohan visits tsunami hit areasIndian Premier Manmohan Singh Thursday toured parts of southern India ravaged by monster tidal waves and vowed the government would do all it could to help rebuild shattered lives.

Half the population of Car Nicobar missingThree days after the killer tsunamis struck, the situation in the Andaman and Nicobar Island on Wednesday continued to be appalling with 10,000 people, half the population of Car Nicobar, still missing

Saudi forces kill 7 militantsSaudi forces killed seven militants in a shootout in Riyadh after twin car bomb attacks against security targets in the latest strike by Islamist extremists waging a campaign of violence in the oil-rich

Senior Zarqawi aide captured in BaghdadUS-led forces in Iraq have captured a senior member of the al-Qaeda linked network led by Jordanian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in a raid in Baghdad, the Iraqi government said yesterday.

5 Palestinians killed by Israeli troopsA Palestinian teenager with Down's Syndrome was killed by Israeli soldiers yesterday in a flashpoint area of the Gaza Strip, bringing the death toll from an Israeli operation there to five, medics said.